This recent poor wet season has been an example of what can happen to Top End waterflow in a bad year, in this case in the north-west catchment.

AFANT president Warren de With told FFF he is very concerned about the draft water management plan for the Daly catchment, saying it over-allocates for industry and under-allocates for the environment.

He is also concerned about variation in rainfall.

"How can you allocate the pie when you don't know what the pie is," he said.